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Irish doctor awarded funding for

research on kidney disease

Dr. Andrew Smyth, NUI Galway, has become the first recipient in Ireland to receive an award worth e486,492 to fund his clinical trial determining the effect of dietary modification on kidney disease.

In his research to help reveal the risk factors for, and impact of, kidney disease, as well as the effect of kidney disease on other aspects of health, Dr. Smyth will form collaborations with international researchers in McMaster University in Canada and the University of Oxford in the UK.

Three Irish researchers were also recently successful in obtaining seed funding, worth over e350,000, to use as funding to understand the function of a novel molecule in killing breast cancer cells, to model the transport of drugs into diseased heart tissue and to generate models of motor neuron diseases using fruit flies.

Women urged to keep up with smear tests

The Irish Cancer Society have stated that Irish women need to understand that they can reduce their risk of developing cervical cancer by regular screening. The statement was issued as part of last week’s European Cervical Cancer week. “In Ireland, an average of 300 women every year are diagnosed with cervical cancer and it is the second most common female cancer in Europe,” said Naomi Fitzgibbon, Cancer Nurse line Manager with the Irish Cancer Society.

“While these numbers are reducing, it is still absolutely vital that women keep up to date with their smear tests. All women between the ages of 25 and 60 are entitled to free tests through the State’s Cervical/Check screening programme and can arrange the test with their own local GP or family planning clinic,” she added.

Dawn Johnson new Direct of Midwifery

Dawn Johnston has been appointed the first Director of Midwifery at the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI), the regulator for the nursing and midwifery professions. Ms. Johnston will commence her role next week. She was previously an NMBI Board member and will be resigning that position to take up this appointment.